Recent statistics have showed that of every employee injured on the job, roughly 40% are new employees. To some, this number may seem surprising (shouldn’t employees who have worked longer be more at risk, since they have been exposed to job hazards longer?), while to others, this comes as no shock (after all, new employees tend to lack the skills and experience of more seasoned veterans), however one of the largest factors in determining the safety of a workplace has not do to with the number of years spent on the job, but whether or not safety is upheld as a priority in the workplace, instead.

When accidents occur in the workplace, it is often because employees are not receiving the message that safety is a number one priority. All too often employers, supervisors, and seasoned workers believe that common sense will prevent most workplace accidents while inadvertently inviting accidents to occur, and while common sense is certainly a useful tool to possess on the jobsite, it is no replacement for formal safety training. New employees are just that, new, and while they are often extremely bright, talented, and driven individuals, they cannot be expected to have a working knowledge of workplace safety practices and procedures if no one bother to teach them these things. Employees learn a lot from the environment in which they work, and from the people that they work with, taking their cues from the behaviors and actions of those around them; subsequently, if an employee is not taught that safety must be a top priority, and they do not see those around them regularly practicing safety in the workplace, then chances are that neither will they.  For safety culture to become engrained within an employer’s workforce, it must be taught and practiced by every member of that workforce everyday without exception.

Examine the safety habits of those around you in the workplace. Are safety rules and regulations clearly and promptly posted at each jobsite, or where special rules and regulations might apply? Are these rules made known to every employee on sight during training or orientation? Is safety  training provided to all employees to ensure that they are qualified to handle any accident or emergency that may occur? Are drills held regularly to ensure that workers safety skills remain sharp and they are qualified to address safety hazards? Do supervisors observe, obey, and enforce rules and regulations while promptly responding to their workers questions and concerns? Answer “no” to any of these questions and you may need to reevaluate the state of safety in your workplace, or else potentially face future disaster. They say that you should always lead by example, and that actions speak louder than words, and nowhere is this truer than in the workplace. Fail to show that safety is a priority, and the next time someone is injured, could you be to blame?

For more information on workplace safety visit: United Alliance Serices Corp.